One red, Two blue
by Scarlet song Cerulean trails
Summary: Erza Scarlet is one of the most powerful members of the most powerful guild in all of Fiore, Fairy Tail. In an age when magic is rare and wizards even rarer, she meets a brother and sister that force her to relive her past horrors while they desperately try to escape their own.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi everyone!**

 **This is my first Fairy Tail fanfic, so I hope that you all like it! I think that it would be safe to say that Erza is my favorite character in F.T and I think that her relationship with Jellal is an interesting one, maybe not the most healthy one but interesting nevertheless. But I haven't found a lot of good stories about them (if you know of any for them or any good F.T ones in general, I'd love some suggestions!), so I decided that I would try and write a story idea that had been growing in my mind for awhile now...this one!**

 **I do not own Fairy Tail or the pic...I'm just responsible for bringing them all together.**

Constructive Criticism and Questions are always appreciated!

 **-X- a later point in time**

* * *

Erza Scarlet ran a sharpening stone down the smooth length of the 15th century blade, gently sharpening its edge as she tried to return it to its former slicing prowess as she reflected on her day. This sword had always reminded her of Gray because of its colors and shape, and the fact that when he and Natsu had come by once to see where she worked this had been his favorite sword in the whole museum.

She smiled slightly as she thought of that morning's walk to her gym to do her routine workout with the two boys, the soft calm before her day truly began.

She had arrived at the gym just as the front desk clock sounded 7:30 and had already started by the time Natsu and Gray had came stumbling in panting and wheezing at 7:35. She annoyedly had to remind them about how important it was to be on-time for appointments and, like the good friends they were, they hurriedly apologized multiple times to her for being late.

Their workout went well. She, of course, had solidly beaten the boys by the clock sound of 9; but they were improving and that's what mattered.

She eyed down the sword's edge, before testing it and nodding her head.

 _Yes, someday they may surpass me in strength and skill as both were quite good even for the level they are at now._ She picked up the sword's sheath and slid the sword in with practiced ease, stopping when she heard it softly click into place.

The three of them had walked to the guild peacefully by 9:15 and even though she had only gotten back from her chosen job last night, the entire guild had somehow known that she was back in town.

Her smile turned into an slight frown as she thought about how her morning of light paperwork at the guild had ended, and her eyes got an angry light in them. Natsu and Gray were never going to get any higher in rank if they constantly picked fights with each other, or disobeyed the rules set by those above them in the chain of command!

Her frown stayed firmly in place as she set aside the stone and picked up a cleaning rag, but her mind had drifted away from the two boys. They were not the only ones that could benefit with learning to give respect to those of a similar ranking to themselves, indeed, a certain blond could also do with some lessons.

She sighed, flipped the cleaning rag over her shoulder and standing with the sword in hand.

She didn't understand why Master let Laxus behave the way he did, but she suspected that it had something to do with the lingering sympathy that he held for his grandson.

She walked down the long hallway of display cases to put the sword back where it belonged. Her thoughts now having drifted to her 12:30 lunch with Lucy at 8-Island, as that had been a pleasant way to start the afternoon. Lucy had told her all about this book that she's been planning to write and Erza had just been able to sit and listen to her friend's plans. It had been a hard morning, so it was nice to just have pleasant chats with a friend over some tea and good food.

She unlocked the display case with a key from her master set and put the sword in its place, then looked up thoughtfully at the ceiling as she relocked the case.

Lucy had seemed a bit nervous when Erza herself decided that it would only be fair to share some of her plans with her blond friend and proceeded to tell her about the workout plan that she had come up with to help Gray and Natsu get stronger, including how she would make them stick with it.

She chuckled to herself as she remembered how Lucy had quaveringly asked her if all that was really necessary. _That girl could be so funny sometimes._

She walked down to another case and unlocked it to reach in with the rag.

She came here to her job as head Weapons and Armor Restorater at Magnolia's Museum after lunch had ended at 1:45 and had been working on restoring an old decorative suit of armor since 2.

She studied the suit with critical eyes as she rubbed. It was going well, but it would take another few days before it would be looking its best again.

She paused in her rubbing as she heard someone enter the hallway and quickly pulled her head out to look, ready to act should she need to- only to spot Reedus the manager of the museum.

"Good evening, Erza." He said as he approached her.

"Good evening." she responded with a nod as she picked up the rag she had dropped in the case, noting as she did that Reedus already had all of his things collected for the evening.

"Doesn't your shift end at eight, Erza? Why are you still here?"

"I was finishing that sword we had talked about a few days ago and I had a lot on my mind, so I lost track of the time."

"Well, I often lose all sense of time when painting as well, but you're going to have to hurry if you want to get to Mira's before she closes tonight."

"What time is it?"

"8:35."

"And Mira's closes at 9!" Erza said, eyes widening slightly as she spun on her heel and walked away down the hall towards the employees room to grab her things.

"Good night, Erza! I'm leaving now, so lock up the door you use to leave." Reedus called after the rapidly disappearing girl and she waved a hand back to him in acknowledgement and farewell.

 **-X-**

Erza sighed softly to herself as she locked the large wooden door of where she worked, then lifted her head high and set off down the street.

The red purple sunset had long since faded, leaving only the darkening blue hues of the sky and the gleam of street lamps to light her way as she walked to her favorite cafe. She dragged her large rolling suitcase along and nodded respectfully to those that wished her a good evening as they passed until she saw the warm lights of the "Strauss Soul" cafe.

She pushed open its red door and heard the little silver bell peal softly as her eyes adjusted to the light. She turned slightly to hop the suitcase up the entrance step before turning back to look around with a slight smile on her face as she walked forward. The light wood floors contrasted with the dark brown trim of the crown molding and window frames, their lines softened with long dark green curtains gently pulled back from the windows and flickering red candles on every table.

She swiveled her head back around to speak to the unusually silent Mira behind the warm wood and lit glass counter, only to have her words of greeting die on her tongue as she stared at the cerulean haired man in her friend's place.

The first two things that her shocked mind registered was that one, he looked just as surprised at seeing her as she was him, and two, that he was hands down one of the most handsome looking men she had ever seen.

He had dark green slightly slanted eyes that were set in a kind, if somewhat serious looking face, with large red tattoos above and below his right eye. His somewhat disheveled bright blue hair seemed to clash a bit with the maroon uniform he was wearing, but the cut of it was flattering to his strong yet slim build.

The longer that they stood looking at each other, the more she felt like he was someone she once knew.

He blinked several times, then tried pulling a smile on over his shock and she could see his mind struggling to work again.

"W-wel-welcome. What can I get you this evening?"

She blinked and opened her mouth to speak, yet failed to make a sound. She cleared her throat as her first attempt at speech failed and glanced down at the counter menu for the name of her usual order as her mind stubbornly refused to think of anything other than the man before her.

"A-a Satan soul, please."

He nodded somewhat jerkily and began preparing her order, but she couldn't find a name tag on him to help her try and remember who he was.

"Where's your name tag?" She asked a little more forcefully than she had meant to.

He glanced down at the uniform shirt pocket over his heart, then glanced to the counter where he had been standing when she first entered. She looked down as well and saw the gold and black name tag laying face down on the counter, she looked back at him to see that he was rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.

"Sorry. We were going to close in the next few minutes and since there haven't really been any people in here, I thought it would be fine to take it off."

She reached out to pick it up off the counter.

"Why do you not like wearing it?"

"It just feels odd to have my name out for anyone to see like that, but I suppose I'll have to get use to it."

"Mira would tell everyone your name even if you didn't wear one, and then it would be out just as quickly. Jel-jelal?"

He chuckled slightly as she struggled to pronounce his name on the tag, then spoke over his shoulder.

"Jer-al, it's pronounced Jeral. It's a weird old spelling of the name, so I can give you no reason as to why it's spelled differently than it sounds."

"Jellal is a nice sounding name though." She said as she sat on a bar stool to continue watching him, a perplexed look in her eyes as her mental search for a Jellal turned up nothing.

She gave a furtive glance down into the desserts display case under the high counter only to see that all the Strawberry Shortcake was gone. She sighed quietly in disappointment and looked up at Jellal to see him just about to add the final ingredient to her order.

"Wait!" She exclaimed, causing him to nearly dump the dark cherries on it anyway. "I would prefer Strawberries on it instead, if you have any."

He looked thoughtfully over his shoulder at her for a few seconds, then smiled.

"I think that we still have a couple in the back, let me go look."

He started walking to the swinging door behind the counter and glanced back at her as he pushed it open before walking into the large backroom.

She tapped her foot rhythmically on the floor as she waited, then started turning his name tag over slowly in her fingers. She couldn't understand how a man could look so familiar to her, but have a name she had never heard before. She had always considered herself good at remembering faces and names, but especially names. _Why are you such a mystery to me, Jellal?_

"You're in luck! We still have a few good ones back here."

"Excellent!" She smiled as he came walking back out, and he had just smiled back at her when something crossed her mind.

"I don't believe I ever introduced myself." She said as she watched him start cutting the berries in half. "I'm Erza, Erza Scarlet."

His whole body stilled as she spoke, but after a second he resumed his slicing.

"That's a beautiful name." He said softly as he added the berries and carefully poured the final drizzling of chocolate sauce.

"Is something wrong?" She asked as he turned to set her Satan soul desert down in front of her, carefully watching his face as he did. He was looking down at the plate, but then looked up at her face with a smile when she made no move to take it.

"Nothing's wrong, I just nearly got my gloved finger while cutting the Strawberries."

Erza gave him a searching look for a second, then nodded her understanding.

"That will be 563 jewel."

She nodded again while paying him the exact amount, and he handed her a fork with a flourish.

"Enjoy, Erza."

She smiled and looked down at her plate as he moved away, only to have a soft blush dust her cheeks as she saw that he had dribbled an extra bit of chocolate sauce to spell out her name with a perfect Strawberry half resting at the end.

She looked up, but didn't see him and correctly guessed that he was in the backroom. So after a quick glance around to be sure that no one was looking in at her from any of the windows, she pulled out her phone and took a picture of it. She never took pictures of food, as it was ridiculous and Natsu constantly sent her pictures of his extravagantly large proportions of meals, but this was different. This time she would make an exception.

She quickly put her phone away and waited for a minute till Jellal walked out again. A look of concern crossed his face when he saw that she wasn't eating, but then he suddenly slapped a hand to his forehead.

"What am I doing?! I forgot the necessary glass of milk! I'm so sorry, Erza."

He opened a chilled cupboard behind the counter and started pouring her a tall green-tinted glass of milk as she chuckled softly.

"It's perfectly alright, Jellal. I know that you haven't been working here long, so it's an easy mistake to make when one isn't familiar with Mira's sometimes overly-generous policies."

He winced slightly as he set the glass down next to her plate.

"That obvious, huh?"

"I'm a regular here, and as such I recognize everyones faces."

"Ah, now I feel a bit better."

He turned to go back to the kitchen until the clearing of her throat stopped him, and he looked back at her.

"I- I don't like to eat alone, so would you mind sitting with me? I'll finish quickly and get out of here so that you may finish your work here and go home."

He blinked several times and nodded before grabbing another bar stool and lifting it over the counter to sit on. He sat there for a few seconds and then set about making a delicious looking cup of creamy tea as she started eating, and after a minute of comfortable silence she decided to speak up.

"What are you making?"

"A cup of my sister's favorite tea for her." He said as he put the tea into a to-go cup. "She's had a difficult time adjusting to school, so I thought that I'd make this for her to take with her tomorrow."

"How kind of you." She said with a smile. "Where are you and your sister from?"

He stiffened and there was a beat of silence before he pointedly looked away from her, down at the cup in his hands.

"Edolas, we defected from Edolas."

She stopped eating and looked at his downturned face for a couple of seconds. Edolas was a huge militant kingdom that completely covered the continent adjacent to the one Fiore was on and was renowned for their extremely controversial and brutal enforcement of their laws.

She reached out and rested a hand on his shoulder, causing him to look up at her in surprise.

"I understand. I lived there was well when I was younger and am just glad that you and your sister managed to escape. I shall not tell anyone about it if you wish, but I do not hold the place of your birth against you or her as it's not something you can help."

"Th-thank you." He started saying more, but she leaned back into her seat and interrupted him.

"How old is your sister?"

He blinked in surprise at the abrupt change in conversation, but then leaned forwards slightly to rest his arms on the counter in front of him.

"She'll be turning 12 soon."

"What is her name?"

"Wendy."

"That's a lovely name. Where is she staying right now while you're at work this late at night?"

"She's staying at a friend's apartment until my shift ends, then I'm going to go there to get her and take her home."

"Oh? Why doesn't he just stay with her at your place? Surely that would be easier on you and her."

"...Well, his place is actually closer to her school than ours is, so it's a shorter amount of time that she's alone. Also I don't want to put him out anymore than I already have, he's the one that recommended I try getting a job here with Mira because he knew that she was a very kind and understanding woman. He's also a bit too tall of our apartment's roof, so he's constantly hitting his head on it when he comes over."

"What's his name?"

"Simon."

She dropped her spoon onto her empty plate and stared at him in shock.

"You know Simon?!"

He nodded slowly, not quite sure where this was going.

"That's what Simon was trying to tell me on the phone the other day! He had said something about a friend, but I was unable to hear him very well and it didn't sound urgent." She smiled at him. "You and your sister must have been what he was talking about, he must have wanted me to meet you."

"Perhaps..." Jellal said, his serous and suddenly concentrated face reflecting his racing thoughts.

She looked down at her empty plate, glanced up that the clock on the wall, then back at him as she slowly stood.

"I wouldn't think about it too much, Jellal. I've been friends with Simon for a very long time and this sounds like something that he would do for his friend."

He nodded somewhat distractedly to confirm that he had heard her, but his face remained unchanged. She bent slightly and grabbed the handle of her rolling suitcase, with these movements getting his full attention.

"I've finished and will now take my leave so that you can finally go home with your sister. Thank you for staying open late for me."

'It's no problem. Mira told me that one of her regulars was getting back in town and that she normally come in an hour or so before we close. So even though I didn't seem like it, I was slightly prepared for a late comer these past few days."

She smiled at him and he returned it with one of his own.

"Goodnight, Jellal. It was a pleasure getting to meet you, hopefully I will see you soon." She said as she shook his hand firmly.

"Likewise, Erza. Depending on what happens with Mira, you may even see me tomorrow if you come again."

"Good, I look forward to it." She said as she walked to the door, but she paused as on the threshold as she stepped out. "What's your last name?" She asked looking back in.

"Marvell."

"Goodnight, Mr. Marvell." She said lightly as the door closed behind her.

Jellal watched her go until she had vanished into the night, then he turned and slid down to the floor behind the counter.

 _Erza Scarlet!_ He knew that he had recognized her face, but the name had been like a sudden blast from the past as the memories had all come flooding back. The frightened, yet kind and brave redhead who had been so scared of the dark cells and chains. The one who he had spoken to time and again whenever he had gotten the chance, despite the horrible punishments that had befell him the few times he was caught sneaking back from having seen her.

He remembered her perfectly, but she didn't seem to remember him and he hoped that she never would. He could become friends with this wonderful woman if she didn't remember what he had been a part of, but he didn't think that she could ever forgive him if she remembered.

* * *

 **So, what did you think of this beginning? Let me know in a Review, and I will answer them down here with the next chapter!**

 **Best wishes till next time!**


	2. Wendy

**Hi Everyone!**

 **Here's chapter two, which I basically wrote in one sitting instead of doing homework. (So bad of me, I know.)**

 **Enjoy!**

 **I do not own Fairy Tail or the pic...I can only wish that I did.**

Constructive Criticism and Questions are always appreciated!

 **-X- a different point in time**

* * *

 **Blarzz! anzz! anzz! anzz! anzz! anzz! anz!-**

Jellal jolted awake at the harsh blaring of the alarm clock on the window sill near him and lifted his head to glare passionately at the vile thing.

 **anzz! anzz! anzz! anzz! anzz! anz!-**

He sighed, then forced himself out from under the warm comforting blanket to walk over and make the thing shut up. He slapped a hand down on the off button and dragged the other slowly across his face before yawning soundlessly.

He stumbled back over to the sleeper sofa that served as his bed, forced the thing up back into a sofa position, and rearranged his blankets and pillows to look decorative. He moved to the coat closet, which when open reveled his meager amount of clothes and no coats, and took out his outfit for the day.

He got dressed in the bathroom while doing his other necessary preparations for the day, then walked out and into the kitchen area to prepare breakfast. He opened the small fridge and after carefully examination of its contents, he pulled out the half-full carton of eggs and fired up the stovetop. While the eggs cooked, he toasted some bread in the oven and prepared their circle table for the meal.

When the eggs were all ready, he walked over to the door to the bedroom and knocked on it. There was no answer, so he opened it and walked over to the full-sized bed. He smiled down at sleeping Wendy, but shook his head when he saw the somewhat awkward position she was sleeping before sitting down on the edge of the bed.

"Wendy...Wendy, wake up."

She opened bleary eyes and stared at him for a few seconds before smiling.

"Good morning, Jellal." She yawned and stretched her entire body with her eyes closed before popping them open again looking awake. He stood up and the little white dog that had been on the bed lept off to trot over to the door.

"You know, you don't need to sleep around Charla. She's a dog and will instantly forgive you if you make her move while you get comfortable." Jellal said gentle as Wendy started climbing off the bed.

"I know." Wendy said, lowering her head. "She just looked so comfortable curled up the way her was when I went to bed, that I couldn-" She let out a little yelp as she lost her balance in a blanket and would have fell onto the floor if Jellal hadn't caught her.

"Sorry, I didn't mean-"

"I know, it's alright, Wendy." He helped pull the tangle of blanket off her and once her feet were safely on the floor, he spoke again. "I've made breakfast. So how about you get dressed and ready for school, then we eat?"

She nodded eagerly and ran over to her closet as he left the room to feed Charla, who protested noisily when he shut the door to Wendy's room to give the girl some privacy.

"She'll be right out." He told the dog as he filled her food bowl and replaced her water, knowing full well that the dog wouldn't even so much as look at the food until Wendy was sitting at the table eating hers. He poured himself and Wendy glasses of water and had just sat down to wait for his sister to appear, when she came out dressed in her school uniform and a smile.

"I love eggs." She said happily as she sat down in the chair opposite his and her smile got even wider when she saw what jam was on the table. "Strawberry!? Charla, we have Strawberry jam again!"

"Yes, no more nasty grape." Jellal said teasingly and both shuddered at the memory of their first encounter with the purple-colored jelly. Having gotten over that horrid memory, Wendy hummed cheerfully to herself as she spread the jam across a slice of toast and added some shredded cheddar cheese to her eggs before tucking in.

Jellal watched her with a soft smile. They had had eggs and toast for breakfast for over a week now because the sleeper sofa had cost so much and she had never failed to say every morning how much she liked them. He looked down at the eggs on his plate and his smile slipped. He on the other hand was getting quite tired of having them everyday. He stared down at the eggs and then was reaching for a slice of toast when a thought crossed his mind.

"I wonder how it would taste if I just put everything into a sandwich?"

"You mean, eggs, cheese, jam, salt and pepper?" Wendy asked with a small tilt of her head. He nodded and she instantly pulled a nauseated face that he couldn't help but chuckle at.

"It does sound rather gross, doesn't it?"

Charla jumped just high enough for them to see her over the edge of the table and did a soft bark at Jellal, both siblings stared at the dog and then at each other.

"Charla forbids you from making that revolting thing." Wendy informed him and he raised an eyebrow.

"Does she now?" He asked as he watched the little dog walk, tail high as well as nose, over to her bowl to begin scarfing down the lot. Wendy giggled at the face he pulled at the dog's back and then they set about the task of seriously eating their breakfast as they only had twenty minutes left before they had to leave.

Wendy washed the dishes while he walked Charla, then they brushed their teeth, and Wendy brushed her hair while he finished cleaning the kitchen and the table.

"Ready to go, Wendy?" He called as he unplugged his phone and slid it into his pocket.

"Y-yes!" He heard her yell from her room before there was a surprised yelp followed by a thud. He started walking over when he heard chastising barks, but Wendy walked out the bedroom with a hanging head before he got there.

"What happened?"

"I fell down while putting on my second shoe..." Came the embarrassedly mumbled reply. He swallowed his chuckles at how silly and adorable she was being and pulled her into a hug.

"I think I saw Charla cast a slip spell on your shoe last night." He whispered. "She feels like she hadn't had enough to lecture you on lately."

Wendy giggled against his chest and gave a muffled. "Oh, Charlaloo." That reminded him of something.

"Hey, I have something for you." He said, releasing her from the hug to walk into the kitchen and over to the fridge. She followed him curiously and stood next to the table as he fished out a large to-go cup before turning to her.

"What is it?"

"Guess."

She inhaled deeply with her eyes closed and then they popped open with excitement.

"Charlaloo tea! Oh, thank you!" She flung her arms around him and he barely had time to lift the cup out of the way so that it wouldn't be hit. He patted her head so as not to mess up her hair, then handed her the cup after she released him. He glanced at the clock on the wall beside him and panic assailed him.

"Jellal?" Wendy asked questioningly before looking at the clock as well. "Oh, no! Your job at the gym!"

They practically flew while grabbing their things and were out the door within seconds with quick calls of "good bye's" to Charla. They walked together until they were about halfway to Wendy's school, before Jellal had to go a different direction to get to work. He turned to her and smiled.

"Have a great day at school, Wendy, and I'll see you tonight."

"You too, see you tonight." Wendy said with a smile even though her eyes were watering a bit. He knew that she hated partings, particularly with him because she was so used to worrying if it was the last time she'd see him. He was going to be late if he didn't leave now, but he couldn't leave her like this.

"Hey." He said softly, wrapping her in a quick one arm hug. "You'll see me tonight, it's fine."

"I know." Wendy said in a quiet voice before taking a deep breath and pulled back with a smile. "I'm fine, you need to go to work or you'll be late."

He smiled and patted her head before quickly crossing the street with a wave to her. She waved back until he was out of sight and then he put his eyes forward determinedly.

A glance around told him that no one was watching, so he ducked into an alleyway, and using his magic, sprang onto a rooftop. He couldn't be seen up here and best of all, there was no traffic lights and crosswalks he had to stop at. Channeling a bit more magic, he sped along the rooftops towards the gym and only occasionally had to leap over a road till he arrived at the gym's street.

He jumped down into an empty alleyway and walked out onto the sidewalk like he had been walking to work this whole time. He pulled out his watch from his pocket and was putting it on as he walked up to the gym's doors when he heard someone say his name. He whipped his head up to look at who it was behind him in the reflection of the glass doors before him and stiffened in surprise.

 **-X-**

"Oi! I'm walking here, Flame brain!"

"What!? I was here first, Ice brain!"

Anyone still at home who happened to have their windows open rolled their eyes or did obscene gestures as they heard the all too familiar sounds of the two boys fighting and closed their windows. One man even yelled down at them that it was too early in the morning for this kind of noise, but the boys paid him no mind and everyone else in the neighborhood knew that this man must be new if he still thought that a shout like that would make them be quiet.

"You were not! I just saw you come climbing out of that apartment window and come running over here to catch up to me!"

"Your squinty eyes must be going, because I've been walking here first the whole time!"

"Then stay walking right there for awhile and see what Erza will do to you when you show up late for Workout!"

Natsu's face paled at the mention of _her_ name and he started dragging his feet while being careful not the slow his pace.

"Seventy-five minutes of pure torture at her hands!"

"An hour and a half is Ninety minutes, Baka!"

"That's even worse! How did we even get into this whole workout mess?!"

Gray rolled his eyes and then casually shot daggers in his glare at the pink haired boy walking with him.

"I believe that a certain common-sense retarded idiot challenged her to a fight and lost so badly that she decided to "help" you get stronger."

"That doesn't explain why you're always there, Frozen guts."

"She invited me."

"And now you can't get out, eh?"

Gray sighed heavily, as if the thought of not only having a hard future workout but also having to spend all that time with Natsu really pained him.

"Yeah."

"Hey, Gray? I think that girl is following you again."

Gray stiffened and forced himself not the look, it only excited her.

"Where? How far back is she?"

"About a street back, I don't know what she sees in yo-"

"Follow me." Gray said as he suddenly ducked into an alleyway, racing off down it and into another with Natsu hard on his heels. The loud wail of "Gray-sama!" only lent them more speed and after a blurring of multiple streets and alleyways both boys pantingly came to a stop, listening for sounds of pursuit.

"Why did we run again? It's only that one weird girl."

Natsu asked as soon as he had caught his breath, crossing his arms over his chest as he frowned at Gray.

"You don't understand, Natsu. That's what I thought too, but then she showed up at the bakery a few days ago. I'd never seen her there before, but she did follow me there once and it was only after that one time that she showed up! I don't want her knowing what gym I go to because she'll just show up there and stare at me through the glass like she did there. She'll learn my whole schedule and stalk me everywhere."

Natsu just kind of stared at him, looking like he was caught between laughing and actually thinking about the situation. They suddenly became aware of voices coming from a nearby dead end alley, a distressed sounding young girl and a older boy. Natsu and Gray exchanged a look, then started walking over to the alley and as they got closer they could hear what was happening.

"Tuna, toast, and fruit again?! This is like the third day in a row, what are you trying to do, starve me?"

"No, but tuna salad is all I have for lunch. Please give it back as you don't want it!"

" _Bleck!_ you seriously need a new diet for your lunches. Hey, Rogue! What's inside of that cup of hers."

A new boy's voice spoke up.

"It smells like tea and other added stuff to me."

"Drink it."

"I don't like tea."

"Well, then dump it out or something if you won't drink it."

They heard the girl gasp in horror.

"No, please! Don't dump it out!"

Both Natsu and Gray had sped up once they understood what was happening and now burst into the alley, eyes finding the three speakers immediately. There was a tall, young looking, blond boy holding a brown lunch bag over his head just out of reach of a much smaller blue haired girl, a black haired boy stood off to one side holding a large to-go cup.

"Give her her lunch back!" Natsu growled to the blond boy who looked quite surprised at the interruption, but after the demand his face turned cocky.

"Make me, pinky." Gray could have facepalmed at the stupidity of this boy as Natsu launched himself at him, only too happy to oblige.

The girl sprang out to the way with incredible speed and stood near one of the alley walls, looking on at the "fight" with wide eyes. Gray turned to the other boy and held out his hand.

"Give me that cup or I'll kick our ass worse than how your friend's getting his kicked right now." The black haired boy looked at the already almost over fight, then shrugged and handed the cup to Gray.

"Natsu! I think he's had enough, don't make me tell Erza that you beat up a high schooler!" Gray yelled, instantly getting the desired effect as Natsu released the blond boy, who stumbled away in a shambling run towards the end of the alleyway. The black haired boy calmly walked after him and then disappeared around the corner.

"Aw man, he wasn't as strong as I hoped he was." Natsu grumbled as he walked over to the girl, who shrank back a bit from him as he got closer. "Here's your lunch back." He said with a big friendly grin to her as he held out the brown bag to her.

She blinked, then hesitantly reached out and took it from him.

"Th-thank you."

"What's your name?" He asked brightly as if he hadn't noticed her hesitation.

"W-wendy Marvell."

"Nice to meet you, Wendy! My name is-"

"The biggest pain in the ass ever." Gray interrupted as he walked over, eliciting a few giggles from the girl as she looked at the face Natsu gave him.

"Natsu Dragneel, Ice ass."

"Hey, don't use that language around her, Baka! Here's your tea, Wendy."

"What's your name?" She asked him shyly as she took her tea.

"I'm Gray-"

"Full-of-mustard!"

"Fullbuster!" Gray growled at the pinkette who looked very pleased at the new name he'd come up with.

"Nice to meet you both." Wendy said with a bow to them, causing them to stare at her.

"What are you doing?" Natsu asked and her head shot up instantly, revealing a flushed pink, slightly mortified face.

"Sorry, sorry! I forgot that you don't do that here, forgive me!"

Gray nudged Natsu with his elbow, then imitated the way that Wendy had just bowed.

"Nice to meet you too, Wendy."

"Gray...what are you doing?" A vein in Gray's forehead stood out as he snapped up and glared at Natsu, who was giving him the same look that he had just given Wendy.

"I was doing what she did to make her feel less embarrassed, Ash for brains!"

"Why would that make her feel less embarrassed?"

"Because it would show her that I don't think that it's weird or anything to feel bad about!"

It looked like a lightbulb when off over Natsu's head as he suddenly looked like he understood and turned to Wendy.

"I don't think there's anything wrong with being weird. I mean, look at Ice for brains here, so weird." Wendy giggled at both their face expressions, Natsu's of 'don't even try to argue, Gray. You know it to be true' and Gray's glare of 'not as weird as you'.

"But Lucy's the biggest weirdo there is, your weirdness is nothing to hers, even Snowflake's weirdness pales in comparison! And that should tell you a lot about her."

"Who's Lucy-san?"

"Oh, right, you haven't met Lucy! I bet she's awake by now, and if not, we can go see her anyway."

"Natsu, it's seven twenty in the morning, and Wendy has school." Gray said, causing Natsu to do a double take of Wendy before rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.

"Oh, right. Well we could meet you after your school lets out and go see Lucy then. What time is it over?"

"Three in the afternoon." Wendy said a bit hesitantly.

"We should be able to do that!"

"Baka! She barely knows us and you're totally coming across as a creeper, trying to take her somewhere she's never been before with just us!"

"Am not! All I want to do is introduce her to Lucy who'll be at the library then, how is that creepy?"

"No, no, it's fine!" Wendy interrupted the oncoming fight with a wave of her hands. "I'd be happy to go to the library and meet Lucy-san if she's such a good friend of yours."

"See, Gray?!" Natsu said smugly. "She doesn't think it's creepy, she wants to meet weirdo Lucy because she can't imagine that anyone could be a bigger weirdo than you, right Wendy?"

Wendy looked a bit like a deer caught in headlights, so Gray hit Natsu on the back of the head.

"Can we walk you the rest of the way to school, Wendy?" Gray asked as she bent to pick up her book bag off the ground by the wall. She straightened up with a smile and nodded.

"It's not that far, so it should only take a few minutes."

The odd trio set off out of the alleyway and down the street in peaceful silence, until Natsu broke it.

"Where are we going again?"

"Wendy's school, Cinder guts, where else?!"

"I know that! I just don't remember it's name."

"That might be because I never told you, sorry Natsu-san and Gray-san. It's Kardia Cathedral school."

"I knew that I couldn't have forgotten it!"

"I'm still living in shock that this _isn't_ a case of you having forgotten." Natsu shot Gray a look, but elected to ignore him in favor of talking to Wendy, so Gray beat him to the punch with a question for her.

"So where are you from, Wendy? You don't sound like you're from around here."

"...I'm from Edolas, but I moved here with my brother."

Gray and Natsu exchanged looks over the top of Wendy's head before looking forward again.

"That's a rough place." Gray said casually.

"Yeah, I'm surprised that we didn't get there to find you beating them up." Natsu said it like it was a compliment as he folded his hands behind his head, but Gray had to fight hard to resist face-palming.

"Oh no, I'm not strong at all! The only way I managed to survive in Edolas was because of my brother."

"What's his name?"

"Jellal."

"Wow, that's one weird sounding name!" Natsu laughed goodnaturedly.

"It's an old one, I really like it." Wendy said with an almost secret happy smile on her face.

"How is it spelled?" Gray asked.

"J-E-L-L-A-L."

That name sounded familiar to Gray, but he couldn't place it so he pushed it to the back of his mind. The school appeared as they rounded a corner and Wendy turned to them with a smile.

"Thank you for walking with me."

"No problem."

"We'll meet you here at three, Wendy! Then to Lucy!"

Wendy nodded, then turned and walked towards the school with a wave over her shoulder. They waved back and watched her until she vanished into the school. Gray glanced down at his phone and his eyes widen in horror.

"Natsu, we're late!"

"Shit! Not for the second day in a row, Erza will kill us!"

* * *

 **A big Thank You to everyone who read, reviewed, favored, or followed this story!**

Manticore-gurl071134 **: I'm glad that you liked the starter chapter! What do you think of this continuation?**

Pi Pi m **: *blushing deeply* Aww, thank you! I hope that you liked this one too and that it did the first chapter justice! :D**

 _Leave a review and I'll thank you too!_

 **Best wishes till next time!**


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